Mission Get Dick to Propose to Barbara Accomplished
by ifithasapulse
Summary: You can't keep secrets from the Batman. Especially not secrets involving your future marriage to one Barbara Gordon.


Dick slid into a seat opposite Bruce's desk, trying to conceal his nerves.

Bruce looked up, raising a brow at his oldest son. "What are you doing in my office? Shouldn't you be at work?"

"I'm on vacation," Dick replied easily. "Besides, GCPD is pretty slow right now."

"Alright. What can do for you?"

"Have you ever thought about proposing to Selina?"

Bruce's eyebrows disappear into his hairline. "What's this about?"

"Just wondering."

"Mmm. Do you wonder about these types of things often," Bruce evaded skillfully.

Dick grinned at him. Bruce might have years and years of practice of avoiding questions but this time, he was going to get an answer. "Occasionally. So?"

"So what?"

Dick rolled his eyes. "Have you?"

"Once or twice," Bruce admitted warily. He eyed his son curiously. "Why?"

"If you were going to propose to her, how would you do it?"

Bruce frowned at him. "I don't know. I suppose I'd buy a ring and ask her if she'd marry me."

"Just like that," Dick asked incredulously.

"Yes," Bruce answered dubiously. "What's wrong with that?"

Dick flung his hands into the air. "That's ridiculous. Everyone proposes like that."

"It's a tried-and-true method," Bruce replied.

"No. _No_. You need more originality," Dick insisted. He got up to pace about Bruce's office.

"Originality?"

"Yes. You need something big, something important. Obviously the ring would be nice-"

"-obviously-"

"But you'd need more style, more, I don't know, more class."

Bruce felt the corners of his mouth twitch as he often did around his sons. "Tell me more," he said dryly.

"You'd need a surprise-"

"-it would be a surprise in the first place-"

"A _different _surprise. Like a show or performers or really expensive food."

"A fancy restaurant?"

"Hell, no! You can't propose in public!"

"You've lost me," Bruce admitted, a full-blown grin playing around his mouth. "Aren't you the performer and I, the anti-social hermit?"

"Well, yes," Dick responded, looking agitated. He scowled at the Turkish rug beneath his feet. "But you've got it all backwards! I'm a performer at heart, yes, but some things are just really personal."

"We all have our own ways to go about our lives."

"Okay, true, whatever rocks your boat. If proposing in public is what it takes to give you a high, knock yourself out, Bruce, I-"

"Dick, I was just saying for instance. I personally don't find that sharing a moment like that with Selina in public would be very appealing. But I thought you would."

"I'm not against it, exactly. I just think that Babs wouldn't appreciate-" He stopped dead in his tracks, cursing himself.

There was a period of silence where Bruce tried to close his mouth and Dick tried to avoid making eye contact with him.

"You're proposing to Barbara," Bruce managed finally.

Dick worked up the nerve to look at him. "I was thinking about it," he croaked out.

"Do you have a ring?"

"Yes."

"How long have you had it?"

"A while."

"Dick."

"Six months."

Bruce let out a whistle. "This is fantastic. Barbara is practically family already."

"I- yeah, I suppose so," Dick said, flummoxed.

"Who else knows?"

"Well, there's Alfred- he helped me pick out the ring. There's Jason –I just had to tell him. Don't ask why, I just did. There's Tim –he has a good, stable view on things. There's Stephanie –I needed a girl's opinion. There's Damian-"

"Does everyone except me know?"

"Um, no," Dick pondered. "I think Cassandra- oh, no, she found out a few months ago. And Selina, because she's always got good advice-"

"_Selina_?"

"Oh, well, I thought you might take it like that," Dick said, wincing. "She gave good advice, too. She said not to rush into things but if it feels right, I'll know it."

"And?"

"And it feels pretty damn right," Dick exhaled.

Bruce rose to clap his son on the back. "Congratulations, Dick. This is an important day."

"What? Wait, I didn't say _today_-"

"Don't waste any time," Bruce advised him. "Go, go!"

He shunted his son out of his office, ignoring his protests. Once he had closed the door, he sat behind his desk, grinning to himself.

Mission Get Dick to Propose to Barbara accomplished.

_You can't keep secrets from the Batman._

* * *

I'd love some feedback on this story. This story was just dying to be written and I hope I did a good job! Please leave a review!


End file.
